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Blastocystis Parasite Blog

Blastocystis may be found in more than 1 billion people worldwide.
We investigate the role of this parasite in health and disease.
Blastocystis is a protist parasitising the intestine of humans and a variety of animals. We estimate that at least 1 billion people worldwide are colonised by this parasite, most of whom probably experience no more episodes of intestinal upset, e.g. diarrhoea, than the average individual. Blastocystis may colonise the intestine for a long time (i.e. months or years).
Many species of Blastocystis are known, of which at least 9 have been found in humans. Such species are currently termed "subtypes" (STs). ST1, ST2, ST3 and ST4 are common in Europe. While ST1, ST2, and ST3 appear to have equal prevalences in patients with diarrhoea and healthy individuals, ST4 appears to be epidemiologically linked to diarrhoea and/or chronic conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
There is no known efficient eradication strategy for Blastocystis. Although metronidazole is often prescribed for Blastocystis infections, there is conflicting reports on its efficacy. Even in combination with a luminal agent, such as paromomycin, Blastocystis eradication cannot be guaranteed. Read more here.
I'm very interested in studies aiming to explore
1) Blastocystis in the environment
2) Why some people are colonised while others are not
3) Whether Blastocystis colonisation requires a certain intestinal flora (e.g. enterotype) to establish
4) To which extent human Blastocystis is acquired from animal reservoirs
5) Potential differences in virulence between subtypes or strains (by for instance comparative genomic studies)
During my Blastocystis research, I and my colleagues have discovered/developed
1) New Blastocystis species
2) Precise molecular methods for accurate detection (PCR)
3) High resolution typing systems (MLST) for strain identification of Blastocystis
4) A standardised nomenclature for Blastocystis
5) A publicly available database for identification of subtypes and sequence data despository (please see links below)
Using microscopy-, culture-based and molecular tools we have generated data that have shed light over the transmission and distribution of Blastocystis subtypes in human and animals.

Why is this post inappropriate?

Do companion animals contribute to human Blastocystis? Do IBS patients have a higher prevalence of Blastocystis and Dientamoeba fragilis than healthy invididuals? Check out this issue of 'This Month in Blastocystis Research'.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

August 2014 saw interesting data emerging on Blastocystis in the background population, mRNA polyadnylation in the Blastocystis nuclear genome which calls for genome reannotation, and a large focus on Blastocystis in the ICOPA 2014 Congress in Mexico City.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

A rare and extremely timely study using NGS tools to sequence DNA from intestinal microbial eukaryotic communities has been published in June 2014 in Frontiers in Microbiology; here's a small review.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

Data emerging from European labs do not exactly support a role for Dientamoeba fragilis in disease. Dientamoeba made it to the headlines of Medscape Medical News from the 24th European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infections Diseases (ECCMID 2014) in Barcelona.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

Despite the fact that humans can serve as both intermediate and final hosts of Sarcocystis, and despite the fact that muscular sarcocystosis can cause severe disease, still very little is know about most epidemiological and clinical aspects of the parasite. We have tried to come up with some ideas that could potentially advance our understanding of the epidemiological aspects of Sarcocystis and sarcocystosis.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

Standardised methods and broadly accepeted reference data are the bread and butter of molecular epidemiological studies of infectious organisms. This post highlights some of the issues related to molecular epidemiology terminology and draws parallels between research in Blastocystis and Cryptosporidium.... Read more »

Why is this post inappropriate?

Healthy individuals appear to be more frequent carriers of the two parasites Blastocystis and Dientamoeba fragilis. We would like to know why and what the public health implications are of this.... Read more »

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